Project to Update Malaysia Authority Records

LC’s Policy and Standards Division is currently working on a project to update all of the name and subject authority records associated with place names in Malaysia to reflect changes to RDA 16.2.2.9, which removed Malaysia from the list of federations that includes the United States, Canada, and others. The University of California, San Diego is helping with the name authority updates. After consultation with the National Library of Malaysia, LC and PCC decided to apply 16.2.2.12, Alternative to all local place names within Malaysia even in cases of non-conflict. This decision is documented in the LC-PCC PS for 16.2.2.12, Alternative as follows:

LC practice/PCC practice for Alternative: Apply the alternative only to places in Malaysia. Defer application to other countries until projects can be developed to change existing records.

The application of this alternative to Malaysian jurisdictional place names means that both the state and country name will be used for the larger place as part of the preferred names of local places. For example, the authorized access point Bentong Town (Pahang) was changed to Bentong Town (Pahang, Malaysia) NOT Bentong Town (Malaysia). Authorized access points for corporate bodies, conferences, and titles that have Malaysian place names in the qualifiers are also being changed accordingly (e.g., Analisis (Jitra, Kedah, Malaysia); World Express Marketing Services (Johor, Malaysia)).

LC and UC San Diego are working on the authority records state by state so it may be months before changes are made to a particular place name. Until the changes are made, catalogers should continue to use the existing headings in their established form. Earlier forms of name for the states without (Malaysia) and associated authority records will remain in the LC/NACO authority file. These will be valid for descriptive use for the time period before September 16, 1963, when the current Malaysian federation was formed. For example, the creator of a 1934 compilation of states laws is Kedah, and the creator of a 2010 compilation of state laws is Kedah (Malaysia).

LC will update the related subject authority records as the name authority records are changed.